Cyclone Gaja Outreach 2018
Cyclone Gaja struck in the early hours of Friday, November 16, 2018. Its intense fury was felt most by the villages in the delta region of Tamil Nadu. As torrential rains and gales of up to 120 kmph whipped up a trail of destruction, lakhs of people became homeless, communication lines were disrupted, and crops decimated. It would take months or even years for these places to get back to normal! Iyyappan, our Founder, personally visited these areas to assess the people’s most critical needs. With funds mobilized from kind donors, Iyyappan and his Relief Team (of school and college-going youngsters) camped out at the affected areas, distributing ration and rehabilitation kits to the most affected families.
- We focussed on 18 areas across 3 Panchayats – namely Edaiyur, Pandi, and Melamarudhur (in Thiruthuraipoondi Taluk, Thiruvarur District)
- Areas were selected based on the extent of damage
- Area assessment was done by discussing with families concerning their most critical needs
- We prepared area-wise family lists which were verified by the local leaders
- We set up a temporary relief camp office at Edaiyur, which was our operations hub where materials were collected, packaged and transported to the Relief Camp Office
- The materials were transported to the affected areas for distribution
- Specific distribution times were fixed for each village and the relief kits were distributed to the families in the presence of the village leaders
- We provided each family with 5 kgs of rice, ½ kg dhal, ½ kg oil, biscuits, tooth paste, candles, bedsheets, and mats
- Tarpaulin sheets were also provided to homes with damaged roofs
- We assisted a total of 1585 families
Between November 23-27, 2018, Sri Arunodayam's team prepared and distributed ration kits and roofing materials to families most affected across 3 Panchayats
For a complete report on our relief operations, click here.
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